A Book and a Chat with Mike Faricy

My guest on today's "A Book and a Chat" is award winning author Mike Faricy .  His novels are an addictive combination of mystery and suspense woven together with a rich strain of humor and a bit of romance.

Always into books from an early age Mike entertaining and engrossing tales are filled with the sort of quirky, oddball characters many would like to know more about, but wisely prefer to keep at a distance. Many of the characters serve, not so much as examples of real people, but more as warnings to the rest of us of the darker side of humanity. Readers will not find characters who are saving the world from terrorism, international banking conspiracies, or coups to topple the government. Rather, they are part of our world, living just below the surface of polite society. The difficulties the characters find themselves in are usually due to their own bad decisions, but then, bad decisions make for interesting tales.

From Mike’s first book “Slow, Slow, Quick, Quick” his crime novel which now number 14 include seven in the marvelous series which introduces us to the bizarrely devilish Devlin Haskell as a PI with a foot on both sides of the law. From the first book in the series “Russian Roulette” through others such as “Mr. Softee “ and “Bite Me” to his latest release the “Ting-a-ling”.

About “Ting-A-Ling”

Continuing the Dev Haskell - Private Investigator Series with Case 7

After answering Danielle’s middle of the night phone call, private investigator Dev Haskell offers to help. It’s a simple task. All he has to do is deliver a message to her former business partner. The next thing he knows, Dev is involved in a missing person case and he can’t find his client or her business partner. That turns out to be the least of his problems when he finds himself on the hook for murder and all the evidence points toward him.

Meanwhile, an incident from his childhood continues to haunt Dev. With his very freedom hanging in the balance everything seems to be beyond his control. He’ll need all his skill and a good deal of luck to save himself. In a tale fraught with danger, Mike Faricy, Master of the Bizarre lays one twist on top of another until a murder rap becomes the least of Dev’s problems.

So listen now and share an interesting and entertaining show as I chat with my special guest today on A Book and a Chat with Mike Faricy

Barry

Direct link to this show and all my other archived shows.
"A Book and a Chat with "Mike Faricy" and all my other archived shows

You can find out more about my guest and their books at:
"Mike Faricy - Ting-A-Ling "

Barry Eva (Storyheart)

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A Book and a Chat with Suzanne Palmeiri

 Every so often I get contacted by or have the name of a new author sent to me to see if I think they “might be a good fit for the show”. It is rare that I ever say no, however if the author is a fellow Connecticut author. So I was at the time glad to have her as a guest and now am equally glad to have her back again to find out what she has been up to since our last chat.

After her success with her two debut books  “The Witch of Little Italy” is a book that has international success and . “I’ll Be Seeing You,” co written with Loretta Nyhan under the name of Suzanne Hayes. Comes two more books that are already proving that the quality of success of those debut books was no one off.

In Suzanne's  thrilling new novel, The Witch of Belladonna Bay, readers will learn if love and magic are enough to bring a broken family back together. She along once again with co writer Loretta Nyhan has produced "The Empire Girls" riveting tale of two sisters, set in the intoxicating world of New York City during the Roaring Twenties.

 About "The Witch of Belladonna Bay" : (taken from RJ Julia)

Are love and magic enough to bring a broken family back together? The answer can be found in Suzanne Palmieri’s enchanting new novel, The Witch of Belladonna Bay featuring the incomparable Bronwyn – and her magic – once again. This is the much anticipated follow-up to Suzanne’s debut, The Witch of Little Italy, which received high praise.

 

In The Witch of Belladonna Bay, Bronwyn is forced to return home to Magnolia Creek, Alabama—a place she hasn’t been since her mother, Naomi, died fourteen years earlier—and the troubled family she left behind. With her brother Patrick behind bars for the murder of her childhood friend and her eccentric father, Jackson, at wits end with her eleven year old niece Byrd, Bronwyn finds herself back at her childhood home, the Big House, and surrounded by ancient Magnolia trees dripping with Spanish moss. But before she can even take in what she left behind, she’s wrapped up in the mysteries surrounding the murder and what the “Strange Ways” running through little Byrd might mean. As Bronwyn unravels the secrets behind the murder, long forgotten memories surface, and the magic living quietly inside of her grows stronger, creating an unbreakable bond between her and Byrd—a bond that will define both of their fates forever.

About "Empire Girls":

Ivy and Rose Adams may be sisters, but they're nothing alike. Rose, the eldest, is the responsible one, while Ivy is spirited and brazen. After the unexpected death of their father, the women are left to reconcile the estate, when they make a shocking discovery: not only has their father left them in financial ruin, but he has also bequeathed their beloved family house to a brother they never knew existed. With only a photograph to guide the way, Ivy and Rose embark to New York City, determined to find this mysterious man and reclaim what is rightfully theirs.

Once in New York, temptations abound at every turn, and soon the sisters are drawn into the glitzy underbelly of Manhattan, where they must overcome their differences and learn to trust each other if they're going to survive in the big city and find their brother. Filled with unforgettable characters and charm, Empire Girls is a love letter to 1920s New York, and a captivating story of the unspoken bond between sisters.

So listen now and share an interesting and entertaining show as I chat with my special guest today on A Book and a Chat with Suzanne Palmeiri

Barry

Direct link to this show and all my other arched shows.
"A Book and a Chat with "Suzanne Palmeiri" and all my other archived shows

You can find out more about my guest and their books at:
"Suzanne Palmeiri - The Witch of Belladona Bay"

Barry Eva (Storyheart)

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A Book and a Chat with Veronica Faye

Following the recent list of thriller, mystery writers who have appeared on “A Book and a Chat” comes today’s guest Veronica Faye.

An avid fan of Agatha Christie’s British tea-cozy mysteries and the hard-boiled novels about detective Easy Rawlins by Walter Mosley since she was a teenager, Veronica recently published "My Past Came Knocking: The Savannah Wooten Case" the first in the Gemini Jones series which I’m sure will become a must set of novels for those who love mystery thrillers.

Veronica started writing the book in 2006 when she was going through her own trials and tribulations undergoing chemotherapy for breast cancer.

About Gemini Jones - My Past Came Knocking: The Savannah Wooten Case: (taken from PRNews)

Veronica Faye pens a murder mystery that follows two women who find the strength to overcome their painful past. The novel’s lead character, Gemini Jones, is a successful African-American attorney who manages a high-profile career while keeping her bipolar disorder in check. Her newest case revolves around the murder of David Ban, a politician widely beloved in the city’s black community.

The client who brings the case to her is a woman she knows all too well: Savannah Wooten. Both women share a painful past together; Gemini and Savannah were able to overcome their traumatizing ordeals to arrive as successful, accomplished women. Yet the murder of Ban, the politician, will force them to relive the past and deal with secrets they long considered lost to time. To proceed with the legal case, both women will have to reveal painful secrets and uncover the real David Ban that the public never knew.

Full of sharp-witted humor and heart-breaking tragedy, “Gemini Jones” is an engrossing read. In the personality of power lawyer Gemini, author Faye has crafted a character that will be a role model for African-American women and an inspiration to anyone who has ever had to manage bipolar disorder while holding down a professional career. A story of pain, tragedy, endurance and success, the novel sends a powerful message of hope as told through the compelling story of two strong black women.

“Gemini Jones: ‘My Past Came Knocking’ – The Savannah Wooten Case” is a mystery that will lure readers with its message of overcoming adversity, its witty, tough characters and a plot that will get readers quickly turning pages.

With the second in the series already underway, Veronica explained that she wants wants Gemini to be a role model for African-American women as well as an inspiration to those who manage bipolar disorder while holding down a professional career.

So listen now and share an interesting and entertaining show as I chat with my special guest today on A Book and a Chat with Veronica Faye

Barry

Direct link to this show and all my other arched shows.
"A Book and a Chat with Veronica Faye" and all my other archived shows

You can find out more about my guest and their books at:
"Veronica Faye - "Gemini Jones: ‘My Past Came Knocking’ The Savannah Wooten Case"

Barry Eva (Storyheart)

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A Book and a Chat with Raymond Khoury

When it comes down to it some of my favorite reading is with authors like Steve Berry, adventure type books, with a bit of history perhaps thrown in, something to get your teeth into so to speak. My guest today is another such author screen writer and New York Times bestselling novelist Raymond Khoury.

Raymond went from a career as an architect to becoming one of the most popular historical action adventure authors as well as a screen play writer of note.

As we learned from the show, Raymond’s trip through the literary jungle was not without mishap… He actually thought he’d made it big as a screen play writer before his success as a novelist when his adaptation of Melvin Bragg’s novel The Maid of Buttermere was picked up by none other than Robert De Niro who announced in the Variety that he would be producing the movie and playing the lead role. Unfortunately nothing more came of that screen play however it did lead to the production “The Last Templar” originally written as a screen play, Raymond was persuaded to adapt it into a novel.

The rest as they say is history. It soon became a New York Times Bestseller, spending 11 weeks on the hardcover fiction list, and a Number 1 bestseller overseas. It has been translated into thirty-eight languages and published in over forty countries. It was also the book where we first met FBI agent Sean Reilly.

This success was soon followed by “The Sanctuary” and “The Sign” before Sean Reilly re-appeared in “The Templar Salvation, a sequel to The Last Templar and “The Devil’s Elixir”.  Now Sean Reilly returns in what will surely another smash hit novel “Rasputin’s Shadow”.

About Rasputin’s Shadow”: (taken from authors web site)

On a cold, bleak day in 1916, a mining pit in Siberia turns into a bloodbath when its miners attack each other, savagely and ferociously. Minutes later, two men - a horrified scientist and Grigory Rasputin, trusted confidant of the tsar - hit a detonator, blowing up the mine to conceal all evidence of the carnage.

In the present day, FBI agent Sean Reilly is tasked with a new, disturbing case. A Russian embassy attaché seems to have committed suicide by jumping out of a fourth-floor window in Queens. The apartment's owners, a retired high school teacher and his wife, have gone missing, while a faceless killer is roaming New York City, leaving a trail of death in his wake.

Joined by Russian FSB agent Larisa Tchoumitcheva, Reilly's investigation into the old man's identity will uncover a deadly search for a mysterious device whose origins reach back in time to the darkest days of the Cold War and to Imperial Russia and which, in the wrong hands, could have a devastating impact on the modern world.

As the Library Journal described the book…

"History, mystery, suspense, and action—Khoury knows the recipe for a good read." —Library Journal.

With further books already in the pipeline the name Raymond Khoury will continue to be must read and be found on book shelves everywhere.

So listen now and share an interesting, and entertaining show as I chat with my special guest today on A Book and a Chat with Raymond Khoury

Barry

Direct link to the show
A Book and a Chat with Raymond Khoury

or you can download the mp3 file of the show from
"Raymond Khoury"

You can find out more about my guest and their books at:
">"Raymond Khoury - Rasputin's Shadow"

Barry Eva (Storyheart)

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A Book and a Chat with Heywood Gould

It is a big welcome back to the show  for screenwriter, journalist, novelist and film director Heywood Gould. Haywood's screenplays read like a who's who of  film masterpieces including “Boys from Brazil”, “Fort Apache, The Bronx", "Cocktail", “Double Bang” and "Rolling Thunder”. He has also directed films such as One Good Cop, Trial by Jury, Mistrial and Double Bang.

When last on the show we chatted about his novels,  "Leading Lady," which was a finalist for the 2008 Dashiell Hammett and Foreword Magazine awards for literary excellence in crime writing and a bronze medal winner for the Independent Book Publisher's Award, and his then latest novel "The Serial Killer’s Daughter”.

 Now Heywood is back with a new character, and new book and the promise of a new series.

"Green Light for Murder" is described as a thriller in which we are introduced to Detective Tommy Veasy, and is the first in a planned series.  It is however that and so much more a "witty thriller is filled with his inside knowledge of the backstabbing, cutthroat, libidinous one-upmanship of the film industry".

As one reviewer described It... "It's the most deliciously biting and wickedly inspired Hollywood satire to come around the pike since Budd Schulberg."

About Green Light for Murder: (taken from "The Big Thrill" blog)

Having been suspended for beating up a suspect in a 10-year-old girl’s murder, Veasy is back on the force, much to the displeasure of police chief George Jonas. In between solving cases, Veasy ad-libs bad poetry and smokes weed. Meanwhile, washed-up director Jay Braffner (aka the Madman) is devising inventive ways of murdering various producers who have stolen his ideas and derailed his career, and he’s also directing an imaginary, and admiring, film crew while he does it.

As stated "Green Light for Murder" is the first in the Detective Tommy Veasy Mystery series, with book two all ready underway and several more being planned I can see Veasy becoming a series many will enjoy and "Green Light for Murder" another hit for today's guest "Heywood Gould".


So listen to an interesting and hugely entertaining show as I spend thirty minutes sharing "A Book and a Chat with Heywood Gould "

Barry

Direct link to the show
"A Book and a Chat with Heywood Gould".

or you can download the mp3 file of the show from
"Heywood Gould"

You can find out more about my guest and their books at:
"Heywood Gould - Green Light for Murder"

Barry Eva (Storyheart)

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A Book and a Chat with Claire Glowen

My guest on tonight’s “A Book and a Chat” was meant to be on a previous show, however owing to traffic issues on the way home from work, I had to cancel the show at the last minute. Thankfully I managed to find another slot and I am pleased to say Claire Glowen was able to be the guest on today’s show.

Claire is one of the three authors of “Death and Rising Through Human Flesh” a Christian Thriller/mystery.

Started by Walt March and the completed by Antony Sturdee and Clair the book was eight years in the making, but the end results have been well worth the wait.

In many ways this book reminds by of John Bunyan’s “A Pilgrims Progress” being  a mystic writing send their hero on a difficult mission: investigate the cruel double slayings and correct the mistakes made during his last years.

The book takes the reader along the mystery and thriller-esque path with frequent stops at the 173 poems (a couple of which Claire read on the program) that fill the pages along with pictures that tie the book and the feelings of the characters into a thought provoking novel.

Like “The Pilgrims Progress” the book is a good against evil that takes the reader deep within themselves and encourages them to look at their own life and how you should live it.

One paragraph that I read in a review stands out to me…

"Don't believe everything you hear - even if it comes from you personally. All the barriers and hurdles we face in our lives live inside of us. Break them down Your soul - your inner powers - are ageless. While alive you can always improve. Don't wait for better times; the best time is NOW"

About “Death and Rising Through Human Flesh”: (taken from Amazon)

The authors of this mystic writing send their hero on a difficult mission: investigate the cruel double slayings and correct the mistakes made during his last years.

He shares his past, present, and future views of the world as he experiences the criminal investigation. Some may find the hero’s perspective cruel, but the truth can't always be sweet.

For harmonization, the narration is supplemented with 173 poems and fourteen professional illustrations, which enhance the readers’ sensations.

So listen now and share an interesting, and entertaining show as I chat with my special guest today on A Book and a Chat with Claire Glowen

Barry

Direct link to the show
A Book and a Chat with Claire Glowen

or you can download the mp3 file of the show from
"Claire Glowen"

You can find out more about my guest and their books at:
"Claire Glowen - Death and Rising Are Through Human Flesh"

Barry Eva (Storyheart)

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A Book and a Chat with Stephen Beccia

Stephen John Beccia when previously on "A Book and a Chat" shared with us about his book “The Treelanders - Journey to the Giants” which was an award winner of iUniverse’s Publishers Choice, and Editor’s Choice. A musician for most his life, he started writing stories when he was ten, the first one being his version of Dr. Jekyll.


Stephen as well as his children's books also produces adult short stories, his list of novels and stories include Winter Chill, Seed of the Werewolf, White Room, Flying with Frank and Warning Sign.

Since last appearing on the show Stephen has produced a kindle version of “The Treelanders - Journey to the Giants”, and now a new novel entitled "The Hawk Squad".

About "The Hawk Squad": (taken from authors web site)

During the summer of 1977 while playing a friendly game of baseball, Dustin Baker gets himself into quite a pickle—a quandary involving his misfit friends, a brilliant hawk, and a distress note written by a girl they have never met. Throw some bad guys and bullies into the mix, and that’s one big fat pickle! 

The Willabee kidnapping is the biggest crime Dustin’s town has ever experienced, and he stands in the heart of the beast. Unknowingly, Dustin and the Hawk Squad are about to play the greatest game of baseball ever played, both on and off the field. 

The Hawk Squad is a fast paced story about a coming of age adolescent geek who finds the inner strength to triumph over one of life’s biggest challenges: being bullied. Unified with his group of misfit friends, Dustin Baker realizes he is not alone in his struggle against criminals at large. Despite taking his share of punches, jeers, and humility, a hero emerges to confront the biggest battle of his life.

As we heard through the program Stephen already has another four of the “Treelander” series on the way, with book two due out hopefully later this year.

So sit back and listen to today's interesting and entertaining show as I host "A Book and a Chat with Stephen Beccia".

If you enjoy these radio shows why not become a follower of the prgram at a A Book and a Chat

Barry

Direct link to the show

"A Book and a Chat with Stephen Beccia".

or you can download the mp3 file of the show from
"Stephen Beccia"

You can find out more about my guest and their books at:
"Stephen Beccia - The Hawk Squad"

Barry Eva (Storyheart)

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A Book and a Chat with Dan Maurer

Dan Mauruer is my  guest on today’s show in a way went from the dark side to the bright side some might say as he went from in the publishing trade to being one of those using the publishing trade.

Dan spent seven years working in trade book publishing, including stints in the editorial departments of both Doubleday and Houghton Mifflin. While supporting Doubleday’s Editorial Director and Houghton Mifflin’s Editor-in-Chief, Dan helped shepherd many notable book projects through the production process; among them John Grisham’s The Firm, Richard Price’s Clockers, and Jim Lovell and Jeffrey Kluger’s Lost Moon, which became the film Apollo 13.

From that start he transitioned to a career in digital marketing, creating marketing strategies for brands as varied as Curious George, Peterson Field Guides, and The Polar Express.

Now full circle Dan has written a book of his own in the form of his thriller/suspense/horror novella, “Snow Day”.

About “Snow Day”: (taken from I’m Shelf-ish blog)

It happens each winter, and has for over 35 years. Every time the snow starts to fall late in the evening before a school day, the dreams begin again for Billy Stone. They are always the same – there’s a dark tunnel, and there’s blood, lots of blood, and someone is screaming. In this chilling childhood tale, Billy, recounts the events of one unforgettable day in 1975. On that day, he and his friends played carefree in the snow, until an adventure gone awry left him far from home, staring death in the face, and running from a killer bent on keeping a horrible secret.

Set in a time before Amber Alerts, when horror stories were told around camp fires instead of on the nightly news, Snow Day is a blend of nostalgia and nightmare that makes us question if the good old days were really as good as we remember. From a new voice in dark fiction comes a thriller about an idyllic childhood turned horrifying; a cautionary tale about how losing sight of the difference between feeling safe and being safe can lead to deadly consequences.

As one reviewer put it…

“So convincingly real, it leaves you reeling… [Snow Day is] very well written, chillingly horrific and believably supernatural. This one makes a great diversion with which to indulge yourself.”

As we learned from the show Dan is already well underway with a follow up novel ”How Does Your Garden Grow” so I’m sure the name Dan Maurer will be one to follow.

So listen now and share an interesting, and entertaining show as I chat with my special guest today on A Book and a Chat with Dan Maurer

Barry

Direct link to the show
A Book and a Chat with Dan Maurer

or you can download the mp3 file of the show from
"Dan Maurer"

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"Dan Maurer - Snow Day"

Barry Eva (Storyheart)

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A Book and a Chat with Suzanne Palmieri

Every so often I get contacted by or have the name of a new author sent to me to see if I think they “might be a good fit for the show”. It is rare that I ever say no, however if the author is a fellow Connecticut author and has written a book that seems to be already a “must read” for many, then you know I will have the author as a guest on my first available slot.

The name Suzanne Palmeiri was sent to me by a previous guest, when I read “absolutely amazing” and “close to perfection” and “magical” I knew that Suzanne would be on the shows first available slot.

Suzanne is a blast of fresh air on the literary map, and her debut novel “The Witch of Little Italy” is a book that has already international. At the same time as Suzanne was snapped up for a two book contract, she also received a contract for “I’ll Be Seeing You,” co written with Loretta Nyhan under the name of Suzanne Hayes which will be released in May.

About “The Witch of Little Italy” (taken from Dream World Book Reviews)

The Witch of Little Italy is the first novel by author and essayist Suzanne Palmieri.

Eleanor "Elly" Amore is pregnant with the baby of her evil and abusive boyfriend. Desperate for support and a fresh start after her theater-actress mother leaves her to deal with her pregnancy alone, Elly decides to reunite with her estranged aunts (all of whom are rumored to practice witchcraft) at their Bronx family home.

Although Elly knows in her heart that she loves her aunts, her memory is fuzzy about the time she's spent with them, and she cannot recall exactly why her relationship with them is estranged.

Upon arriving at her aunts' home, Elly is instantly reunited with her childhood sweetheart, Anthony, who also lives in the building. As Elly makes herself at home, she begins to blossom and thrive under all the love she receives. However, ghosts and mysteries dwell in and around the Amore home, putting Elly and her fuzzy memory to the test as she embarks on learning more about her past.
That same reviewer described the book thus…

If I had to use one word to describe Palmieri's debut, it would be "magical." Everything about The Witch of Little Italy screams magic as you read it, and the more you read… the more mysterious and magical this book becomes.

The book is story telling at it’s finest, on par with the classics of our youth.

As  Romantic Times Magazine wrote about "The Witch of Little Italy"…

"Suzanne Palmieri's enthralling debut will make adult readers nostalgic for beloved books from their childhoods. Abundant with secrets, hidden passageways, magic and several enchanting mysteries, it'll keep you on the edge of your seat until the end. The magic and witchcraft elements are subtle, enhancing the over-all effect of this clever, beautiful novel."

With a second book already in the editing stage and the soon launch of I’ll Be Seeing You” The name of Suzanne Palmieri should be on your “must read” list.

So listen now and share an interesting, and entertaining show as I chat with my special guest today on A Book and a Chat with Suzanne Palmieri

Barry

Direct link to the show
"A Book and a Chat with Suzanne Palmieri"

or you can download the mp3 file of the show from
"Suzanne Palmieri"

You can find out more about my guest and their books at:
"Suzanne Palmieri - The Witch of Little Italy"

Barry Eva (Storyheart)

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A Book and a Chat with Chuck Barrett

Chuck Barrett is my guest on today's "A Book and a Chat" an author I first came across during my show following "The Next Big Thing" blogs. During that show I came across his blog about his then  next book "Breach of Power" a book that comes out later this month and was fascinated about the subject and the success of his previous books.

Little did I know when I invited Chuck to be a guest on the show how it would flow with the previous show and the thriller writers such as Jon Land and Gary Grossman who have been gusts in the last few weeks.
Chuck comes from a background of air traffic control with a history of being a commercial pilot and flight instructor, where the only writing might be down to drafting labor agreements.

Like many though he knew he had a story inside of him, so using his own experiences and over a period of twelve years he produced his debut and now award winning novel "The Savannah Project " which also introduced the readers to Jake Pendleton.

The book became an award-winning novel, winning awards in ForeWord Reviews Book of the Year Award, International Book Awards, and Reader View's Reviewer's Choice Award and received such reviews as...
The Savannah Project signals the arrival of a new member to the thriller genre. "Chuck Barrett". The tale contains all of the danger, treachery, and action a reader could wish for. The intrigue comes from all directions, slicing and stitching with precision.

This success was followed by "The Toymaker" which as we learned from the show was inspired by a chance meeting while on holiday.

Now comes Chuck new book "Breach of Power".

About "Breach of Power" (taken from Chucks web site)

A hiker finds a journal deep inside a glacier that was lost during World War II. On its frozen pages are etched the secret locations of treasures lost since the 1940s. But something more ominous is scribed in the journal, something that threatens the Presidency of the United States.

Jake Pendleton is summoned to the White House and instructed to locate and acquire the book. He soon realizes there are others on a quest to find it as well.

Others who will kill to get to it first...

As the reviewer of his first book noted...

...signals the arrival of a new member to the thriller genre. "Chuck Barrett". 

This third book just cements Chuck as a writer that all thriller lovers will enjoy.

So listen now and share an interesting, and entertaining show as I chat with my special guest today on A Book and a Chat with Chuck Barrett

Barry

Direct link to the show
"A Book and a Chat with "Chuck Barrett"

or you can download the mp3 file of the show from
"Chuck Barrett"

You can find out more about my guest and their books at:
"Chuck Barrett - Breach of Power"

Barry Eva (Storyheart)

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A Book and a Chat with Rosemary McCracken

Rosemary McCracken is today’s guest on “A Book and a Chat” she is the author of the thriller novel “Safe Harbor” or is it “Safe Harbour” (You’ll have to listen to the show to understand that comment).

Rosemary is now a freelance journalist who specializes in personal finance and the financial services industry though her background has been working in newspapers across Canada as a reporter, arts reviewer, editorial writer and editor.

While literature has always been part of her life it was only in the latter years that she finally has produced her own literary works. Firstly with short stories and now finally with her debut novel “Safe Harbor.”

The book was not without its teething problems, her original attempt seemingly not being wanted, it was only after sharing her work with veteran Canadian crime writer Gail Bowen who told Rosemary that “This book needs to be written in the first person…”, (it was written in the third person), that ”Safe Harbor” became what it is now.

Rosemary entered the rewrite in the 2010 Debut Dagger competition, sponsored by the British Crime Writers Association, where it was shortlisted. The success lead to it being published and Rosemary already has a follow up under way.

About “Safe Harbor”: (taken from “Morgan Bailey’s Writing Blog”)

Safe Harbor opens when a frightened woman barges into financial planner Pat Tierney’s office with a shocking request: “Look after my boy; he’s your late husband’s son.” The next day the woman is murdered and police say the seven-year-old may be the killer’s next target. In a desperate race to protect Tommy, Pat’s searches for the truth and uncovers a deadly scheme involving illegal immigrants, trafficking in human body parts and money laundering.

The book has received many great reviews, as one person wrote.

"The title of Rosemary McCracken's debut novel, Safe Harbor, resonates on many levels. Safe Harbor, a house that offers refugees with questionable legal status a home, is a central player in the novel's fast-paced and involving plot. But the words “safe harbor" also reflect the life financial adviser Pat Tierney has chosen to live after her husband Michael's sudden death. In the opening pages of the novel, Pat is ripped from her safe harbor by a dark secret from her husband's past. She is forced to meet challenges she could never imagine, but her courageous refusal to turn from danger makes her a very compelling protagonist. This novel will stay with you long after you've turned the final page."

So listen now and share an interesting,and entertaining thirty minutes with my guest Rosemary McCracken.



(If you have enjoyed the blog or the radio show, why not become a follower of the show?)

Barry

Direct link to the show
A Book and a Chat with Rosemary McCracken

or you can download the mp3 file of the show from
"Rosemary McCracken"

You can find out more about my guest and their books at:"Rosemary McCracken - Safe Harbor"

Barry Eva (Storyheart)

My Blogs:

Book Information and Things UK - Across the Pond

Book and a Chat Radio Show Guests - A Book and a Chat

Funny, Weird Or Just Interesting News From Around the World - Laugh I Thought My Trousers Would Never dry

A Book and a Chat with Jonathan Maxwell

Back in April of 2010 Jonathan Maxwell was the guest on “A Book and a Chat” talking about his award winning book "Murderous Intellectuals: German Elites and the Nazi SS".

As I said at the time…

“Sometimes you come across a book about something that is well known, yet my guest author still finds a new way to look at the subject.

In Murderous Intellectuals: German Elites and the Nazi SS, Jonathan Maxwell sets himself two daunting and urgent tasks—to explain why the Holocaust occurred and to prevent future genocides. In doing so, he takes the reader from the minutest of details about individual Nazis to grandiose narratives about human nature, psychology and civilization.”

Today Jonathan is back with some totally different, though again full of stories and issues we all know yet showing us the readers a different side to subject.
In his new book “Piltdown Man and Other Hoaxes” Jonathan explores scientific frauds through history from Bigfoot to Atlantis, Sea monsters to Mermaids, he focuses especially on the Piltdown Man Hoax, which is sometimes casually called the Missing Link Hoax.

In the early 1900s, a group of men unearthed a human cranium and jaw from an excavation in Piltdown, England. Soon, many scientists hailed the discovery as being Charles Darwin’s “Missing Link.” Decades later, the discovery was revealed to be an elaborate hoax. The cranium came from a thoroughly modern human being, while the jaw came simply from an ordinary ape. In the process, the fraud cast a dark shadow on the emerging scientific field of anthropology and the study of human origins.

Jonathan is already at work on his next book, once again a totally different and perhaps known about subject taken from his now normal investigative different angle. I am looking forward to this next book “Tragedy at Altamont” Where he investigates the Rolling Stones, the Hell's Angels, Death, and Sympathy for the Devil, a work which chronicles the Rolling Stones‘ disastrous 1969 tour

So listen now and share an interesting, and entertaining show as I chat with my special guest today on A Book and a Chat with Jonathan Maxwell

Barry

Direct link to the show
A Book and a Chat with Jonathan Maxwell

or you can download the mp3 file of the show from
"Jonathan Maxwell"

You can find out more about my guest at:
"Jonathan Maxwell - Piltdown Man and Other Hoaxes"


Barry Eva (Storyheart)

My Blogs:

Book Information and Things UK Including my Olympic Blog - Across the Pond

Book and a Chat Radio Show Guests - A Book and a Chat

Funny, Weird Or Just Interesting News From Around the World - Laugh I Thought My Trousers Would Never dry

A Book and a Chat with Ray East and Sam D

I am back from my trip back across the pond to England, and what a wonderful time I had there, the whole country during the Olympic Games seemed to be walking around with a smile on its face. From the first to the last it was a truly magical event.

You can read my Olympic blogs at http://acrossthepond-storyheart.blogspot.com

Talking about magical it’s great to have on my first show back a writer of another truly magical time and location.

Ray East along with her partner Sam D is the author of the magical, mythical, adventure, romance, coming of age YA fantasy novel VOLUSPA- A Magical World.

While the book is a YA fantasy. It is a crossover between urban fantasy and paranormal romance with a mythological and dystopian twist. This book showcases a unique coming of age story of a fifteen year old girl who struggles with the ramifications of forbidden love, obscure parentage and in essence struggles to find her place in a world that is threatened by her very existence.

One reviewer described the book as having “the edge of Harry Potter, the vibe of Narnia and the twists of Twilight”… now that puts this book as a must read, which it is.

About VOLUSPA- A Magical World(Taken from Amazon)

Twilight meets Harry Potter Amy, a forlorn fifteen year old girl from NYC, never thought that she would attend school on a magical mountain with wild animals as her classmates and that she would go to a prom on a flying carpet.

Its love at first sight when Drake- a shape shifter rescues her from a pre-historic beast and befriends her. Little does she know that Drake’s father is the tyrannical leader who has always wanted Amy and her kind dead. In her struggle to challenge the supremacy in the magical world, she realizes her powers, confronts aspects about herself that she may not be comfortable with, makes lasting friends while excelling in her school - something which she had not been able to do in her human world.

All hell breaks loose, as Drake goes missing and Voluspan mercenaries try to hunt Amy down. Amy and her friends use strategic warfare, pit adversaries among themselves and use every last drop of strength, skill and courage as they take on warriors far more ruthless and skilled than themselves. But Amy is in for a rude shock when she finally finds Drake.

The book has already received many rave reviews with readers clamoring for the next in the series, it is indeed a book for the whole family. As one reviewer wrote..

A plot which sucks you in and you wish for more. The 5 main characters of Amy, Drake, Jacek, Amelio and Cornelius are very well fleshed out, and this is something you dont get to see a lot in middle grade books. I love Amy, the 15 year old heroine and i felt i could relate to her a lot.

What makes books for me is the writing, and this story is amazingly written. There are ancient creatures, gnomes, kapas, griots, niads,gangrels, magic, and you think to yourself "This is true fantasy as far as fantasy will go" but because of the writing, you also feel for the characters, and it all seems so real, so normal, and so true. The events in the book are grand and fantastical, but the emotion that the characters feel, and that you feel with them, is very grounded and personal.

The writing and the story caters itself well to the teen reader, but I enjoyed every bit of reading it with my 12 year old.

I now also add my voice to the many others saying bring on book two…

So listen now and share an interesting, and entertaining show as I chat with my special guest today on A Book and a Chat with Ray East and Sam D

Barry

Direct link to the show
"A Book and a Chat with Ray East and Sam D"

or you can download the mp3 file of the show from
"Ray East and Sam D"

You can find out more about my guest and their books at:
"Ray East and Sam D - Voluspa: A Magical World"

Barry Eva (Storyheart)

My Blogs:

Book Information and Things UK Including my Olympic Blog - Across the Pond

Book and a Chat Radio Show Guests - A Book and a Chat

Funny, Weird Or Just Interesting News From Around the World - Laugh I Thought My Trousers Would Never dry

A Book and a Chat with Terrance Aym

There are so many mysteries in our world, or even one might say this world as many people, including Terrance Aym, my guest on todays “A Book and a Chat” believe we are just a small dot in the Multiverse.In his book “Mysteries Of The Multiverse: 25 True Stories From Time And Space” Terrance goes into some of the question and strange incidents of planet earth.

His book has been called “Eclectic, dramatic, exciting..." and includes amongst the twenty five stories items such as…The horror that drove a British sailor mad… The amazing truth about an American base on the Moon…The astonishing story of America’s war against a race of giants… How the genius Nikola Tesla almost destroyed the world…All about a deadly time vortex erupting in Antarctica…Why a Russian engineer claims he has a working time machine…Thomas Edison’s fantastic attempt to speak with ghosts…The evidence for terrifying, giant five foot spiders in the Congo… A Russian spy trawler’s eerie encounter with a deadly ghost ship…and 16 more otherworldly reports that truly are stranger than fiction!

Terrance has stated he rights for two reasons…the first is to entertain and inform his readers; the second, writing gives him personal pleasure.With “Mysteries Of The Multiverse: 25 True Stories From Time And Space” you can add “make you think” to that list.

As one reviewer put it…

This book presents sets of occurrences/encounters from each of four areas: Time, Space, Fiction and Science. The author tells tales of dinosaurs making modern day appearances, blood raining down from the sky, and a ghost making an appearance at a local airport (I read this last one right before going to bed. Not recommended!), among many others.

The author provides links and citations for each story, so that you can read further about the incidents presented if they interest you. In case you are thinking that the author is one of those people who believe every story they hear, the he also tells of myths/legends that have no proof of occurring, or have been debunked.

So listen now and share an interesting, and entertaining show as I chat with my special guest today on A Book and a Chat with Terrance Aym

Barry

Direct link to the show
"A Book and a Chat with Terrance Aym"

or you can download the mp3 file of the show from
"Terrance Aym"

You can find out more about my guest and their books at:
"Terrance Aym - Myteries Of The Multiverse: 25 True Stories From Time And Space"

Barry Eva (Storyheart)

My Blogs:

Book Information and Things UK - Across the Pond

Book and a Chat Radio Show Guests - A Book and a Chat

Funny, Weird Or Just Interesting News From Around the World - Laugh I Thought My Trousers Would Never dry

A Book and a Chat with Mar Preston

Today was special “A Book and a Chat" being the 500th show and it was fitting that the guest I had not only kept us laughing but proved yet another interesting and entertaining visitor to the radio show.

Mar Preston has lived a pretty eventful live, when her previous jobs include picking grapes in the Beaujolais fields and daffodils in Eureka, California, where she also sold Fuller Brush door to door, cleaned motel rooms, cracked crab and filleted fish. Her “what if” view on life and imagination developed through short stories until finally after seeing some police monitoring a march she was taking part in the idea for a detective story was born.

Her first book “No Dice” introduces us to melting pot that is Santa Monica as well as Police Detective Dave Mason and Ginger McNair. The knowledge she shows within this real who done it has been remarked about in many rave reviews.

I am totally shocked that this is the author’s FIRST novel! It is such a fast paced who-dun-it, that I would have thought she had 5 or 6 books under her belt! Guess being a creative writing teacher really DOES give you the writing chops! You will be hooked from the first chapter of the tight story.

Her characters are lively, true to life and you can’t beat real life for giving you an excellent backdrop to base a story on! The story has lots of twists and turns to keep you guessing. Even if you guess who the murder suspect is before the end, you’ll be flipping the pages quickly to see how they get caught! You’ll also be hoping there will be another book to follow- and there will be… If you’re looking for a new voice in the police procedural genre, check it out...

The success of this first book leads to “Rip Off” and more of Detective Dave Mason.

About Rip-Off

High-tech burglary and murder are bad for business in the upscale, tourist-destination beach city of Santa Monica with its leftist politics, rich homeowners, and huge homeless population.
Bad for Detective Dave Mason of the Santa Monica Police Department.

A deadbeat burglar has been found in the upscale Santa Monica beach condo of a playboy studio exec. The dead body must link up with a string of high-tech burglaries, and the Chechens Mason keeps meeting must link up with each other somehow, but how?

The investigation leads him down mean streets into the dark world of embezzlement and an explosion that almost kills him. The stakes rise as the investigation send Mason to the Hollywood Russian community where he is warned off by the FBI and Homeland Security. A bungled take down results in two murders of key informants. Fingers are pointed. Mason is outranked and the Department blamed.

While Mason brings an international whodunit to an end, restoring his own and the Department’s reputation, he finds his relationship with his community activist girlfriend teetering on the edge.

As Mar shared with us a third Dave Mason book is on the way ash she herself wants to know what happens next to Dave and Ginger.

Meanwhile there is a new “standalone” novel “Payback” soon to hit the shelves.

A California mountain village explodes with the news of the beheading of a popular mayor. But we’re all such nice people here in our little paradise, aren’t we, people ask?

It’s up to Sheriff’s Homicide Detective Dex Stafford to discover who of all these nice people has a dark motive. The village’s Patrol Officer, Holly Seabright, turns out to be a helpful, and attractive, ally in the dangerous unraveling of this fast-paced story.

As a reviewer said…

“Her in-depth research into police work, how the police think and function; the story itself which kept me spellbound to the surprising end. Love her character development. A must for all lovers of mystery. “

I for one agree with that and I could not be more pleased to have Mar Preston as a guest on this 500th show.

So listen now and share an interesting, and entertaining show as I chat with my special guest today on A Book and a Chat with Mar Preston

Barry

Direct link to the show
"A Book and a Chat with Mar Preston"

or you can download the mp3 file of the show from
"Mar Preston"

You can find out more about my guest and their books at:
"Mar Preston - Rip Off"

Barry Eva (Storyheart)

My Blogs:

Book Information and Things UK - Across the Pond

Book and a Chat Radio Show Guests - A Book and a Chat

Funny, Weird Or Just Interesting News From Around the World - Laugh I Thought My Trousers Would Never dry